Police Recover Plane, Missing Body

Coast Guard and police boats conducted grid-pattern searches off the Amagansett shoreline throughout the week for the missing plane crash victims.
Durell Godfrey

East Hampton Town police announced in a statement early Friday evening that the wreckage from Saturday's plane crash was located, along with one of the two missing victims.

Four died when the private plane crashed. The bodies of Ben and Bonnie Krupinski were pulled from the Atlantic shortly afterward among the debris, though police would not publicly confirm it was their bodies that had been found until Friday.

The identity of the body most recently found is being withheld until the Suffolk County medical examiner's office makes a positive identification, East HamptonTown Police Chief Michael Sarlo said.

The Krupinskis' 22-year-old grandson, William Maerov, and the pilot, Jon Dollard, had been missing since the crash.

"After an exhaustive search over the past week, the wreckage of the Piper PA-31 Navajo was located on Thursday afternoon approximately one mile off Atlantic Avenue Beach, and police divers have been scouring the wreckage throughout the day," Chief Sarlo said.

"One additional victim has been located amongst the debris this afternoon," the chief said in the statement.

The body was to be taken to Coast Guard Station Montauk and from there to the Suffolk County medical examiner's office.

Police divers will continue to search for the remaining missing victim.

About the Author

Taylor K. Vecsey returned to The East Hampton Star in 2014. She was the founding editor of East Hampton Patch news site and also ran Southampton Patch. Ms. Vecsey is a member of the Bridgehampton Fire Department, where she volunteers as an emergency medical technician.